Piontless till you factor in the fuel economy and the fact that you have a Dodge instead of a Ford (resale)! Just what is the towing limit of the Dakota? I am happy with the towing ability of my Ranger, if more is needed then I can go to my F250 or my F350 to do it in a safer manner. It is more than just being able to pull, you need handling and braking as well which is hard to believe in a small little truck.

 

"Piontless till you factor in the fuel economy and the fact that you have a Dodge instead of a Ford (resale)! "

Umm... I have no idea what the first part of that sentence is supposed to mean. Properly configured the 2004 will tow 6600 #'s(That is probably for a 5.9 auto, but the 5spd.'s were less than 400 away last time I checked . The biggest real world difference I see is that he could tow another vehicle w/ the dak and not w/ the Ranger. I've towed many boats, cars, and even the F150 I have now with a dakota. I actually felt more in control then than when it was the other way around (f150 towing the Dak). Driven the same way I wouldn't expect more than 2 mpg diff on normal commuting w/ the 4.7. If he gets a V8 5spd. he will have absolutley no problem getting good resale $$ for it. Promise

 

A friend of mine tows his 66 Mustang show car on a trailer with his 96 Ranger from Saskatchewan to the northern states to car shows regularly with NO CONTROLL problems what so ever. Don`t know his fuel mileage but he never complains. Around here the Dodges do not sell as well as the Fords, nor as quick. Promise.

 

Well either your friend has an auto. or he's overloading his truck. Never said the Ranger had towing control problems, just that the one he was considering can't tow very much. I'm glad you know how many of each brand are sold in your area.

 

Yes he has an auto and we will let him know just how much he is over loading (?) his Ranger so now you can rest easy.

 

I am coming back to this thread again because just yesturday down some back roads I saw a sport track towing a midsize tractor on a dual axle trailer-just the day before I saw a 4 door Dakota w/a full size tractor on a similar although bigger dual axle trailer. Going 35mph the trailer being towed by the sport track went into a "death wobble" where the trailer started going side to side and dragging the truck with it. I think he hit a small bump in the road which sent it into the wobble-a bump that was literally the size of a 1inch raised sewer cap. He ended up being drug off the road and was able to come to a stop without damaging anything. The Dakota the day before had no problem whatsoever and got onto the highway faster than I could in my Wrangler. Obviously the V8 had a big part in that. As for resale, the Dakota will have a better resale value as it can be had with a V8 and that there is tons and tons of Rangers out there, and its basically the same truck design from back in 94. I seriously think that after reading most of the posts on this website that Ford is a cult that sucks its customers in to think its the best no matter what.

 

Go over to the Ranger forum and look up the "how many miles do you have?" thread. Numerous trucks with hundreds of thousands of miles. How many Dakota and S-10 owners can say that? Nowhere near as many as Ranger owners. Say what you want about V8s and trailer-towing, etc...: the Ranger is one tough little truck.

 

Who cares how many people are registered here and saying how many miles they have, that is not even close to good indicator of the reliability. Theres also a lot more Rangers on the road-there are different reasons for that, not because its "better". People need to stop taking what they see on the internet, or what they see in a Ford message board as Fact and the end all be all of everything.

 

With your statement there sounds like nobody on this site is very credibleor for that matter on any other board. Hey you definitely hate rangers as well as any ford product from what I see. Hey this is a ford site we favor fords thats the way the thing works. I personally dont take everything on the board as Fact. If I did that I wouldnt buy any pickup because they all have problems.You like dodge I like ford No problem we all have different tastes by what you like

 

Does the last sentence apply to your remarks, too?

You have to be careful about posting your OPINION on FTE, anymore. We have more and more new members that only want to hear opinions that are 100% in agreement with their own. Whatever happened to the good ol' days, when we could agree to disagree? The intolerance level seems to be increasing daily around here..........

 

OK, first of all, the towing capacity on my Ranger is 5,250 lbs. That's with the FX4 package. Without the FX4 package it's even higher! So what's with you guys saying you can't tow another vehicle with it?? I've pulled a flatbed trailer with 3 4x4 ATVs and a bed full of equipment without trailer brakes and had NO trouble whatsoever. You're looking at about 3,500 lbs. just hooked to the receiver hitch alone there. I could have put another vehicle on that trailer, and would have still been under the 5,250 lb. limit and wouldn't have noticed much difference although I would want brakes on the trailer preferably in that case. I don't think 800 lbs. of towing capacity is a reason to go run and buy the Dakota.

And no, for the last time the 4.7L Dodge V8 will NOT even come close to the Ranger in terms of fuel economy. I've driven them and I have friends that own them and they are always complaining about how horrible their fuel expenses are. And for the record....the Ranger is a half-ton truck also. There is no reason to go with the Dakota over the Ranger except for the longer warranty. That's it.

 

WXBOY: We are talking about a specific truck, not yours. The MANUAL trans. (what this thread is about) at best tow 3100#'s go look and see for yourself(fx2 even less). If your going to argue at least read carefully what we are talking. This is not specifically at you, and I hope it doesn't come across mean spirited. I just like to have a good discusion that sees both sides.

 

Well I'll be the first to admit that the manual trans. in the Ranger is junk. The Ranger is the only truck that I wouldn't have a manual in. I actually prefer the manual myself...but Ford just doesn't have a good one and never really has. I've been keeping up with this post since the beginning and didn't realize that it had anything to do with the transmission though. So carry on....

 

the manual trans. is good in the big trucks f-250 and f-350 especially 90-99

 

I completely agree with everything you just said. I would never expect a Larger engine, pushing a heavier/larger truck to get the same fuel economy of a compact truck. The Dakota does have a higher capacity because it has more power to pull/haul more. As for me not taking what I see on boards seriously-I don't, I go by numbers that are proof of fact, and from driving the vehicles in question myself. I've worked at 2 of the Big three manufacturers dealerships and have seen my share of cars/trucks come and go. I know many mechanics from all 3 makers and I can honestly say that some cars/trucks perform better than others in certain aspects.

150Ford-since you like to continue with calling me out-I've been fascinated with Mustangs since they were introduced, the 92-96 F-Series is the best looking pickup made IMO (why I bought a 92 Bronco), I loved my Bronco-but had to get rid of it because it was a hog on gas, my mother owned a 96 Explorer w/4.0 V6 and was a good SUV but was lacking in area's, so she went with a Grandcherokee and has been happy since. My sisters first car was a 93 Tauras that was indestructable except for a rear wheel bearing and the AC needed to be charged. With a father who's been in the auto industry for 30+ years, we've owned many cars and have had many experiences. Remember this is Ford vs. Competition.